Ben Peterson is a socialist based in Wellington, New Zealand. He is a national retail organizer with FIRST Union and the convenor of Unions Wellington.
By the 1970s, New Zealand’s union movement had grown to become powerful, popular, and left-wing. This was in large part thanks to leaders like Bill Anderson, whose organizing skills were matched by his political vision.
Days after announcing a public-sector pay freeze, Jacinda Ardern’s government unveiled pro-union legislation. But salvation won’t come from above: unions in New Zealand will have to rebuild their power with class-conscious organizing.
The landslide reelection of Jacinda Ardern’s Labour government is a welcome opportunity for New Zealand’s left. Yet Ardern’s record in office shows that we can’t rely on Labour to bring about progressive changes without pressure from social movements and the Left.